Backbone
by marry-me-mellark
Summary: "She goes to open the door with a huff, throwing the oven gloves over one shoulder and wiping sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. Nayru, could they have picked a better time to come calling?" Zelda gets an unexpected & unwanted visitor. Modern AU. Rated T for mild language & violence. One-shot.


**A/N: **Back after a hiatus! Slightly different tone to previous stuff, but had this idea pop into my head this evening. Bit angsty, bit intense, but fun. (At least, I think so.) Enjoy!

**Summary: **Zelda gets an unexpected & unwanted visitor. Modern AU. Rated T for mild language & violence. One-shot.

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the copyrights to _The Legend of Zelda_.

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><p>She goes to open the door with a huff, throwing the oven gloves over one shoulder and wiping sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. <em>Nayru, could they have picked a better time to come calling?<em>

She struggles with the key for a moment - _really need to get that fixed_ - and tugs the door open, her eyes widening in shock when she sees who it is.

_Why is he here? What is he doing-_

Her hand seems stuck to the door handle, gripping it tighter as she stutters out a greeting. He responds so calmly, not caring that his appearance here has made her heart start beating a rapid tattoo against her ribcage.

_Shit, he can't be here. Why is he here? I should shut the door. I should make an excuse. I should-_

"B-but-but-"

"No buts. We need to talk."

"I don't understand-"

"-What there is to talk about?-"

"-Yes, um-"

"-Well, how about where you were last night, for starters?"

"..."

"..."

"I don't think that has anything to do with you any more. Goodbye."

"WAIT! Wait - you are not shutting the door on me that easily -"

"No! Get ou- mmph-!"

She goes to slam the door in his face, but he gets his foot in the way, and somehow - _how did he manage that? _- the door ends up slamming shut with him **inside** her apartment. _Shit_.

He gives her a smirk that she would once have swooned over. Instead, the shock and fear that had been bubbling in her system starts turning into anger.

"Get. Out. Of. My. Apartment."

"You need to tell me why you were where you were last night. Then I will leave."

"I really don't-"

"-Stop resisting me-"

"-DON'T interrupt me. I will not. It is none of your business. That door closed a long time ago."

The anger that has slowly been building erupts. His eyes widen, his head tilts back and he puts his hands up at the sudden appearance of her backbone.

"Hoo, baby - where did THAT attitude come from?"

She crosses her arms and gives him a withering look.

"Me. It's all me."

"Weren't you a year ago."

"It was. It was just better hidden then. I'm older now."

"And so damn sexy, too-"

He doesn't see the punch coming. His jaw gives a satisfying crunch as she clocks him one, and though pain splinters through her fist, she will not give him the satisfaction of seeing her wince. She **will not**. The oven gloves have fallen off her shoulder, and she readies herself to hit him again, blowing a wisp of hair out of her face.

"OW!"

"Don't you dare call me sexy, you lying, cheating, moblin of a man-"

"-Din dammit, I think you broke my jaw-"

"-I want you gone from here, you understand?! There is NO REASON for you to be here any more. Whatever REASON you had to barge into my life left a year ago-"

"-Alright, alright, sheesh, girl-"

"-So you can just stuff it and shove it-"

"-I said alright!-"

"-And I'm not a girl, I'm a fully grown woman!"

By this point, she's up in his face. He's backed against the door, one hand on his rapidly-swelling jaw, the other in the air.

Part of her observes that he is gentleman enough not to hit her back.

Then his eyes deliberately look down beneath her face.

_Scumbag!_

She quickly backs away, crossing her arms over her chest again, tucking her hands underneath her armpits.

"Don't you dare look at me like that."

"Hey, you're the one that drew attention to the fact that you were a woman-"

"-You can just leave. N-now."

_Din dammit._ Why did she have to stutter? Now he knows he's getting to her.

She can smell her dinner starting to burn. _Nayru, get him away from here. Please._

He just looks at her, rotating his jaw, testing it. He shakes his head.

"No."

"Get. Out."

"No."

"Do you want me to call the police?"

"Hey, can you just listen to me for one second?"

"Why- why should I listen to you?"

He breaks eye contact, twisting his head away. A nearly imperceptible shoulder shrug.

She softens.

"Fine. You have a minute."

He moves towards her, his hands going to grasp her arms. She takes a step to the side, backing against the hall wall. His hands drop, but he looks at her earnestly.

"I came here to warn you. Going where you went - it's not safe any more. So please don't. I don't know why you were there or who you were seeing. But it's not safe. For anyone. So just- just stay away."

She doesn't quite know how to respond to this. She manages to hold her confusion in (for once), keeping her face impassive. _What on earth is he on about?_

Instead of a verbal reply, she goes to her door, unlatches it, and holds it open. When he doesn't move immediately, she gets impatient.

"You can find your own way out, right?"

"...Right."

"Good. Now go."

He tosses his hands in the air with a sigh, and slumps past her, dejected. She gets a good eyeful of his bruised jaw. He stops, and turns to say something once he is on the other side of the doorframe, but she slams the door shut before he can get a word in.

She rests her head on the latch, massages her aching knuckles, and breathes in deeply through her nose. Her eyes widen.

"Shit! Dinner! Crap!"

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><p><strong>AN: **What did you think? Hit the button below and leave a review - feedback much appreciated. Thanks!

xHHEx


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